Isola.design lands in Saudi Arabia with an exhibition at Tanween 2023

Tanween, Ithra's Season of creativity is Saudi Arabia's largest creativity platform and has been connecting creatives from around the world since its foundation in 2018. Each year Tanween's program features workshops, exhibitions, performances and events that celebrate the power of creativity in innovation. Today, Ithra is the Kingdom's cross-cultural and creative hub, a stage for new talent and innovators.


© Ithra

This year, Isola's founders, Gabriele Cavallaro and Elif Resitoglu, were invited to take part in the Tanween 2023 program with an exhibition dedicated to Isola's design community, "Routes to Roots". Exploring the concept of creativity through the metaphor of scale as a tool for measurement and comparison, "Routes to Roots" told how the physical size of an entity does not necessarily determine its impact on our planet.


Routes to Roots

Relying on a large design community of emerging talent, Isola presented a selection of functional design objects made with a conscious and environmentally sustainable approach. Each designer and design studio shared their concept of creativity with the Saudi community, presenting projects that look as much to tradition as to innovation, creating a seamless channel of communication between past and future.


Tellurico live performance © Yasir Alqunais 

Also featured in the "Routes to Roots" exhibition were live performances organized by Isola, which included the involvement of Tellurico design studio who sculpted a polyester block presenting a contemporary carving technique. IAMMI design studio, on the other hand, created its famous "Clouds," cloud-shaped armchairs made by recycling and carving polyurethane foam.